Problems getting prescriptions are only the end part of the process. In the US, most doctors won’t prescribe hormones without a patient having undergone a psychological consultation beforehand. At first glance, who would object? Hormones are powerful drugs that cause permanent changes and a screening process should be in place to make sure that you’re competent to make the decision to take them, right?

Just weeks ago, the Welters thought Olivia’s nurses would walk out the door when she turned 21. But in late October, the family joined a lawsuit filed by the family of another disabled man who had lost services, William Hampe. The state of Illinois then agreed that it would continue the level of services that Olivia had been receiving while the case goes through the courts.

“I have pain in my stomach, stabbing pains, in isolated areas,” Rednour added. “The sharp stabbing pain is all over my abdomen where this discoloration is, it’s in my arm pits and around my breasts. I have this dry hacking cough, my sinuses are swelling up, and I have an insatiable thirst.”

Rednour’s recent problems are a continuation of others that have beset her for months, including headaches, respiratory problems, runny nose, nausea and bleeding from the ears.

John Moore at The Denver Post: Oh, the disabled can pack a punch line (note, as you can see from the title, questionable language usage abounds in this piece and it also includes reclamatory uses of slurs like the r-word)

“Like many marginalized and disenfranchised populations, there is reclamation of power that goes with being able to take words that have been used pejoratively and use them to make people laugh,” said Hill. “While I do think the primary purpose of ‘Vox’ is entertainment, it also serves the secondary purpose of advocacy.”

But furthering understanding of the disabled, she said, requires an audience not made up entirely of disabled people.

“Like most movements, if you continue the conversation only among yourselves, you’re not going to get very far,” she said. “Women, for example, can talk about ending sexual violence as much as they want, but until they have as many male comrades in the fight with them, it’s not going to stop.”

Clearly there is a negative perception of disabled people in the UK, which can undoubtedly be attributed in part to right-wing media representation of the disabled. The Daily Mail is notorious for this. A recent front page screamed, “75% of claimants are fit to work“, and carried on: “Tough new benefits test weed out the workshy”.

About s.e. smith

s.e. smith is a recalcitrant, grumpy person with disabilities who enjoys riling people up, talking about language, tearing apart poor science reporting, and chasing cats around the house with squeaky mice in hand. Ou personal website can be found at this ain't livin'.
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